A/N - Well in case you hadn't guessed by now, I'm back. Sorry that I went on such a long hiatus but life got in the way, a lot of stuff happened and I wasn't in the place to write but finally I have found my peace and have spent the last 2 weeks writing so I have a few chapters banked to post. I can see by the stats that people are reading so I will continue to post until I'm finished or everybody abandons me lol. I have noticed that since I've been back I haven't had a single review though, why not make a girl feel loved and either drop me a review or a pm to tell me how you think I'm doing, or if you have any suggestions.
For the record I have recently discovered (after re watching S4 and seeing a txt from Franky to Bea where she signs off Franky not Frankie...) but I'm kind of stuck with Frankie now after all this time... apologies for this lapse in continuity!
On with the fic. I've tried to keep a mixture of fluff and storyline throughout the chapters. some will be some fluff to pass the time inbetween important plot lines, others will be heavy with plot lines. Hopefully I've got the mix ok for everyone. Please drop me a review and let me know your thoughts!
AL
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"This is bullshit" Boomer complained three hours into a compulsory induction that the prison board and filming crew had set up for any of the inmates who would be involved in the documentary.
"I've actually never been this bored before in my life" Bea confessed as she laid her head on Allie's shoulder and closed her eyes against the headache that was slowly forming.
"Surely we must be almost done here?" Boomer asked louder than she meant and received a glare from the woman at the front who was explaining how various equipment worked and why it was important for them to know.
"I don't think she like's you Boom's" Maxine whispered with a smirk causing the other women to laugh.
"Sorry ladies, did you have a question?" The woman asked, glaring towards the group who had interrupted her again as she smoothed her hands over her grey pencil skirt.
"Sorry, I'm just failing to see why we need to know all of this information" Bea asked, defending her friends. "I mean, you're the one's doing all the filming, not us. We have been in here for hours now and in case you hadn't realized... the women are getting a bit restless, and you really don't want restless women inside this place, it never ends well" Bea forced a warm smile onto her face.
"I'm sorry, is that a threat inmate?" The woman asked pointedly, her hands moving to her hips and her body pointing towards the group of women that had disrupted her speech.
"I'm sorry, did you just refer to me as inmate?... I have a name, it's Bea" Bea growled in annoyance, the women in teal surrounding her smirking at how fired up Bea was getting with the stuck up cow leading up the meeting.
"Yes, inmate. If you have a problem I would be happy to call an officer and have you removed to the slot" The woman spat angrily and grinned when the room silenced in shock. She stared at Bea, challenging her pick a fight with her.
"Go ahead 'love', I would appreciate an excuse to get out of this room and stop listening to this boring crap" Bea challenged as she sat forward, ignoring the warning looks from her crew who were watching on in concern at the side of Bea they hadn't experienced for month's, well since before the altercation with The Freak. The woman at the front grabbed a walkie talkie from behind her back and called for an officer assistance and waited with a pointed look at Bea, a smirk on her face at her achievement of following through on her threat.
Bea refused to turn around when she heard the door open behind her and heard laughter amongst the women as a guard entered.
"What's the problem in here?" Bea knew exactly which officer it was when she heard the Kiwi twang, and that explained the laughter. She felt herself relax a little knowing her ally was the one who had come to reprimand her.
"This inmate is being disruptive and abusive, I want her removing to the slot right now" The woman smirked, glaring at Bea and never once looking at Mr Jackson, not even to acknowledge his presence.
"Right... being abusive how?" Will asked in shock, Bea had been placid for month's now, so this claim of her being abusive was highly unusual. He glanced towards the inmates and noticed Bea sitting forward in her chair, looking anxious and not too happy. The H1 girls looking nervous and the other inmates looking excited at the prospect of some drama.
"It doesn't matter how, I said to take her to the slot so just do your job and take her away" The woman ordered, finally turning her attention to the prison officer and glaring at him like he was a speck of dirt on the bottom of her shoe.
"Sorry, I don't take orders from members of the public... Smith, sit back and relax and let Miss Eustace carry on with her induction lesson" Will glared at the woman up front before turning his attention to Bea who smiled at him kindly and sat back in her chair as requested.
"I said take her away, not tell her to relax, do I need to radio your boss and tell her about your insubordination and lack of being able to do your actual job?" Miss Eustace glared at him challengingly, she faltered when she watched the prison officer grab his walkie talkie and request the Governor to join him in the induction room. The women all smirked in amusement of Mr Jackson's actions, laughing at the look of fury on Miss Eustace's face at him not jumping to her orders. Will Jackson and Miss Eustace stared each other down until Miss Bennet finally entered the room several minutes later.
"What's going on Mr Jackson? Is there a problem?" Vera asked, picking up on the tension straight away between her deputy and the woman from the film crew. The inmates watching on with a mixture amusement and excitement.
"Your officer is being rude and insubordinate, that's what's wrong. I ordered him to take that inmate to the slot and he is too weak and scared to do it" Miss Eustace smirked as she pointed a long, perfectly manicured finger at Bea.
"Sorry, I was speaking to Mr Jackson" Vera glared at the woman, trying to keep the smirk from her face as she heard a murmur of amusement rise amongst the observers.
"Miss Eustace has ordered me to remove Smith to the slot for being abusive and disruptive, however when I requested an explanation of the abuse, she couldn't provide one. I examined the situation, Smith was still sat in her chair, but was clearly uncomfortable about something, so I told her to sit back and relax, she complied instantly, and Miss Eustace was unhappy with the result and ordered me again to take her unnecessarily to the slot, she then began verbally abusing me in front of the inmates and threatened to report me to my superior, so I followed protocol and got you here to handle the situation" Will informed her with a smile, trying to hide annoyance at the arrogance of the woman who had insulted him.
"Very well then, this session is over, please escort the women back to their unit's and I will escort Miss Eustace and her team from the premises, Thanks Mr Jackson" Vera smiled warmly, the urge to grin at the laughter and cat calls from the women was getting harder and harder. She turned to the woman who had already irked her several times before the induction had even started.
"Miss Eustace, if you would like to follow me I will escort you from the premises, if you put up any struggle I will be forced to call the police and have you removed and charged with obstructing a prison officials role whilst on prison premises" Vera put all her energy into her glare and not into the cheering of the women surrounding her.
"You can't do that" The woman screeched, but quickly stepped into line when Vera raised her walkie and informed someone to get the police on standby for assistance in a situation. The women cheered louder as they watched Miss Bennett escort the camera crew from the room.
"Smith to see you Governor" Linda Miles introduced as she escorted the inmate into the room then left. Bea walked to the chair and sat down in it, looking guilty and apologetic and rather small.
"I looked over the footage... do want to explain to me what that was all about?" Vera asked softly, deciding to try and speak to Bea as a person and not as her Governor in hope that she could get to the bottom of the situation without causing any further issues.
"Honestly? The woman was a up herself. Took a disliking to the girls getting bored of her rattling on about random shite we don't need to know about, and she rubbed me up the wrong way with how she was speaking to us. Calling me inmate, like I'm a piece of scum, and threatening me. I lost my temper with her, I shouldn't have done that, and I'm sorry I did" Bea confessed much to Vera's surprise.
"I get it, she was a stuck-up bitch... she pushed it with me a few times before the induction and I can tell you that Mr Jackson isn't too happy with her either. She has been escorted from the premises and I have spoken to the production manager who will be sending a replacement who is more suitable" Vera smiled kindly.
"Thanks for understanding" Bea grinned sheepishly.
"Yes well... it comes with conditions... I have spoken to Bridget about the incident and she agrees with me that you would benefit from doing some anger management. With your case coming up, and Frankie working her arse off to give you a chance of getting out of here some day, you need to be keeping your nose clean, and sometimes that means being polite to people who you could happily thump" Vera said sternly, expecting an explosion from the former top dog.
"Yeah fine, you're right. Set it up and let me know when and where to be and I will be there" Bea agreed easily, shocking Vera and causing the inmate to laugh at her response.
"Look... Miss Bennett, For the first time in a long time, I have some hope. Maybe Frankie will do everything she can and it will still be for nothing, but right now I have a chance to get out of here one day, a chance to have a life outside of these walls with Allie, I don't want to mess that up, I can't mess that up. I trust your judgment and I trust Bridget's judgment and if you both agree that I need some anger management, then I will do it, I will do whatever it takes to get a chance at a life outside with Allie, at a life where we have our own home, our own family, that we aren't being bossed around and managed by you and your screws, no offence, but I will do whatever it takes to make that happen. I don't want to die an old woman in here. I don't want to watch everyone I love get out of here and build a life without me, I don't want to watch Allie get out of here and fall in love with someone else and have to tell her to go be happy, I don't want to watch as you and Will, and Linda bloody Miles retire and be left in here dealing with the same old shit but being too damn old to do anything about it. I don't want to leave this place in a fucking coffin, so you tell me what to do, and I will do it, regardless of how hard it will be. And I promise in future I will try and keep my calm and act like a responsible adult and not a feral inmate" Bea wiped a tear from her eye angrily.
"It's ok Bea, I know you are trying, and I know you deserve a chance at freedom. Don't be so hard on yourself" Vera handed her a tissue and a glass of water and sat beside her instead of opposite her.
"Thanks... for everything. Frankie told me how much help you have been giving her. The fact that she trust's you so much, the way she act's with you... you know Frankie, she doesn't love easily, but she has welcomed you into her life...so thank you, and thank you for helping her out there, in the real world" Bea sniffled sadly.
"Yes well, Frankie has a way of getting under a person's skin doesn't she" Vera smirked.
"Yeah, that she does" Bea nodded, wiping her last tears away.
"Bea, just know, Frankie, Bridget, Me... we are all doing everything we can to give you a second chance one day, we will do everything until we are out of options, and even then we will keep trying... but you have to help yourself too" Vera patted Bea's shoulder warmly and watched as Bea nodded her understanding.
"You're alright you know Vera" Bea grinned.
"So I keep hearing... I think my reputation has suffered greatly lately" Vera laughed.
"Probably the opposite, the women respect you so much more now, They see you fighting in their corner, they see that you're a human behind the uniform, they see you smiling and laughing with the women and they warm to that... you're the best Governor we have ever had in here, any of the women will tell you that" Bea smiled warmly.
"Right, enough of the soppy shit... get back to the unit and sort yourself out. Just make sure you attend those appointments with Bridge, yeah?" Vera smirked, Bea nodding her agreement as she rose from the chair.
"Hey Vera, while I have you alone... Frankie and Bridget's engagement party is coming up, I was wondering if there was a way I could transfer some money to you so that you would be able to get her a gift from me and the girls, it suck's that we won't be able to be there, so we wanted to do something nice for them both to show them how much we love them both" Bea asked sweetly.
"Leave it with me, and don't mention it to anyone else, it is highly inappropriate for money to exchange between a prison official and a prisoner, so let me work a few thing's out and I will let you know the plan" Vera winked before opening the door.
"Vera" Bridget smiled as the Governor entered her office with two coffees and two chicken salad wraps in her hands.
"I come bearing gifts" Vera grinned, taking a chair and smiling as Bridget took the other green chair.
"Ok... tell me what you want" Bridget grinned when Vera blushed.
"Nothing gets past you hey" Vera laughed as Bridget shook her head.
"I was wondering, you haven't sent the engagement party invites out yet, I was wondering if you could tell me where you're planning to have it and how many people, without asking me any questions about why?" Vera smirked cheekily.
"Well, we haven't sent the invites out because our invites have the original venue on it, and the original venue got burnt down the other day, and we are struggling to find anywhere at this late notice that can hold around a hundred and fifty people" Bridget frowned sadly.
"Well you know that the officers club will hold around four hundred people, I could arrange for you to hold it there?" Vera offered, hearing about the venue for the first time and feeling terrible for her friends.
"Do you really think we would be allowed to hold it there?" Bridget asked, a small smile of hope on her lips.
"It's up to the governor's discretion what it is used for, as long as we can guarantee that there won't be any drugs brought in, which I don't think we need to worry about" Vera laughed.
"Oh god no!" Bridget grinned, grabbing a piece of paper and a pen from her desk and writing the details down.
"This is the date and time and stuff, my mum has been organizing it all, her and dad wanted to do it all as a gift for Frankie and I... I've written her contact details down and will let her know to give you a call after you have confirmed that the dates and everything are ok" Bridget grinned.
"Fantastic, well let me go and speak to the office girls now and I will double check that the time and dates are free and if they are I will pencil it in so that nobody can take the spot... chat soon" Vera grinned as she skipped out of the room much to Bridget's amusement.